Buckle



Nov. 15, 1955 G. s. HAWlE ETAL BUCKLE Filed Nov. 8, 1951 I 71/4 I 'IIIIIII I v IN VEN TOR 5 GABRIEL 5. HAWIE L u A P Y B LORIN B SEBRELL E. AMBROSE flaz v /fi wz x wag v ATTO/F/VEVE United States Patent BUCKLE Gabriel S. Hawie, Bridgeport, tZonngLorin B. Sebreli and Paul E. Ambrose, Dover, DeL, assignors to International Latex Corporation, Dover, Del., a corporation of Delaware Application November 8, 1951, Serial No. 256,976 4' Claims. (Cl. 24--=196) This invention relates to adjustable and readily disengageable fastening devices. The invention is primarily intended for and serves a particularly useful purpose in conjunction with garments having one or more relatively thin, rubber latex or the like straps such, for example, as those used to support hose.

While highly resilient or readily stretchable garters are usually desired for girdles and the like wearing apparel, it is particularly desirable that garters of this type be utilized in connection with girdles made from relatively thin, rubber latex and provided with depending garter tabs or straps of the same material, examples of girdles of the latter type being disclosed in U. S. Patent No. 2,360,736, When such highly resilient garters, having stretch characteristics comparable to those of the material from which rubber latex girdles are made, have been employed in the past, it has been difficult to provide means for readily adjusting the garter length which at the same time maintains the adjusted length during use of the garter and which is readily removable when not in use.

For example, with certain buckle arrangements heretofor'e' known, a garter comprising an adjustable length strap made of relatively thin rubber latex or the like sheet material would not maintain its desired adjusted length under repeated intermittent stress of stretch because such highly elastic and readily stretchable strap material is greatly reduced in it's cross-sectional dimensions when elongated under stress. In many arrangements heretofore proposed for adjustable devices this reduction in cross-sectional dimensions caused slipping of the strap with respect to the buckle or the like holding means. A problem encountered in solving this difficulty is that any positive clamping of the rubber strap by a member having a sharp edge or any piercing of the same by a prong is detrimental to the strap itself, causing it to break or tear.

As described in the 'copending application of Alfred B'atzdorfi, Serial No. 228,217, filed May 25, 1951, and entitled Adjustable Fastening Devices, the above-mentioned diflicuiti'es may be overcome by providing a buckle which has a pivotally' and slidably mounted wedging member preferably in the form of a bail which wedges the suspending or suspended strap between the 'wedging member and a stop provided on the body of the buckle when the strap is pulled. A similar, improved buckle is described in the copending applicatio'n of Gabriel S.

Hawie, entitled Adjustable Fastening Devices and filed on even date herewith. The present invention relates to improvements in the adjustable fastening devices and the buckles described in the aforesaid copending' applications.

it has been found that when the buckle forms part of a garment-supporting device such as a garter, the strap at the portion thereof which is looped about the bail will wear rapidly and'will eventually tear if a portion of the buckle does not extend above the looped portion of the strap. This undesirable wear is apparently due to the fact that overlying garments rest on the exposed looped portion and with movement of the wearer the strap is 2 the strap has headed edges as is customary with thin, highly elastic straps of rubber latex. I

It has also been found that the gripping action of the pivot bail forming part of the buckles of the aforesaid copending Hawie application is best When the portion of the bail which engages the strap is disposed so that it rubs against or contacts the side of the cross bar which forms the stop member for the buckle as the bail is pivoted from a position above the cross bar to the position in which the strap is wedged between the cross bar and the bail. This has been found to be a ready measure" of the efficient gripping action desired.

In accordance with our invention, the stop member or bar which, in cooperation with the bail, engages the highly elastic strap has a raised upper surface so that overlying garments are held away from the looped portion of the strap. Preferably, the stop member or bar has a pair of raised portions, one at each end of the bar, which extend above the looped portions of the beaded edges of the strap; In addition to providing protection for the beaded edges, these raised portions reduce the effort required to open and close a bail which is so disposed as to engage the stop bar in the absence of the strap because it is unnecessary to compress the beaded edges ofthe strap as the bail is moved into its strap eng'aging position.

Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide an adjustable fastening device which protects the strap with which it is'used from harmful abrasion by frictional engagement with overlying garments. i

It is a further object of this invention to provide a garter which has a relatively long life.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a buckle of the aforementioned type which is easy to open and close and which is therefore relatively simple to adjust.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will more fully appear from the following detail description setting forth the manner in which we now prefer to practice the invention and from the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. l is a side elevation View of an adjustable garter constructed in accordance with this invention;

- Fig. 2 is a plan view of the garter shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is an end elevation view of a portion of the adjustable buckle shown in Figs. 1 and 2;

Fig. 4 is a side elevation, cross sectionaI view of the garter shown in Figs. 1 and 2 and taken along the line 4-4 indicated in Fig. 2; and

Fig. 5 is an enlarged, fragmentary, cross-sectional view of the garter shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 4 taken along the line 5-5 indicated in Fig. 4.

Referring to the drawings, the preferred embodiments of the adjustable garter and adjustable buckle of this invention comprise a flat, relatively thin member 10 which may be formed from sheet metal and which has a pair of spaced side bars 11 and 12 which are connected together by a pair of spaced, substantially parallel cross bars 13 and 14, the cross bar 13 serving as a stop as will be described hereinafter. The member 10 preferably also includes a third cross bar 16 which has its upper face below the upper faces of the side bars 11 and 12. The cross bar 16 is provided for strengthening purposes and assists in preventing bowing of an elastic strap to which the buckle may be attached as the tension on the strap is relieved.- Such bowing is undesirable because of the slipping it may cause, but if the strap is confined, such as by the wearers body, the crossbar 16 may, if desired, be omitted.

The cross bar 14 may be a continuous piece as shown in the drawings but it may also be separated along the length thereof so as to form two arms which extend inwardly from the side bars 11 and 12. Preferably, however, the cross bar 14 is continuous along its length so as to provide a more rigid structure.

The pair of spaced lugs 17 and 18 are mounted on the cross bar 14 for the purpose of pivotally and slidably receiving a wedging member or bail 19. The bail 19 may be formed from a single piece of wire bent to the shape indicated in the drawings or it may be formed in any other desired manner. The bail 19 has a cross bar 24 and a pivot portion provided by the wire end portions 20 and 21 which together form a cross bar between the pair of spaced side bars 22 and 23. The side bars 22 and 23 have outwardly extending portions adjacent the cross bar 24, these portions being adapted to engage the upper surfaces of the side bars 11 and 12.

When the bail 19 is assembled with the member 10, the pivot portions 20 and 21 of the bail 19 are at least partly surrounded by securing means 25 having a tubular portion 37. The securing means 25 also has an aperture 26 therein for receiving a garter tab 30, and the tubular portion 37 has an aperture 37a therein which permits the lugs 17 and 18 to extend therethrough and which permits rotational movement of the member 10 with respect to the securing means 25. The securing means 25 also has a pair of ears 27 and 28 which engage fastening means 29, and in conjunction with the tubular portion 37 the ears 27 and 28 pivotally secure the fastening means 25 to the member 10 and the wedging member or bail 19.

The garter shown in Figs. 1 and 2 includes the garter tab 30 having a button 31 at one end thereof and a head 32 at the other end thereof. The button 31 cooperates in the usual manner with the aperture 33 in the fastening means 25 to receive and hold the end of a stocking, for example.

The garter preferably includes a strap designated generally by the numeral 34 which is, for example, made of rubber latex or the like highly elastic, sheet material having a thickness of the order of .025 of an inch and which may be provided as an integral part of a girdle of the type referred to above. The strap 34 is looped over the cross bar 24 of the bail 19 and has an end portion 35 which overlies a load-carrying portion 36. Both portions 35 and 36 pass underneath the cross bar 13, the upper surface of the portion 35 being in contact with the under side of the cross bar 13 and the upper portion 35 being wedged between the cross bar 24 and the cross bar 13 when the load-carrying portion 36 is under tension.

The inner face of the lug 17, the inner face being the one which faces inwardly of the member 10 and which faces the lug 18, is spaced from the inner side 13a of the cross bar 13 a distance such that when the bail 19 is received between the lugs 17 and 18 the bail 19 may be pivoted from a horizontal position, such as the position shown in Figs. 1 and 4, to the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 4. Preferably, the spacing between the inner face of the lug 17 is such that the outer side of the cross bar 24 engages the side 13a as the bail 19 is pivoted from the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 4 to the position shown in solid lines. If desired, the bail 19 may press against the side 13a and hence spring past the cross bar 13, and with this construction the portion 35 of the strap 34 will be clamped between the cross bar 24 and the cross bar 13 even though the portion 36 is not under tension. It will be noted from Fig. 4 that the side 13a is nearer to the pivot portions 20 and 2l of the bail 19 than the edges of the portions which support cross bar 13 from the side bars 11 and 12 and the cross bar 24 is curved at its ends away from the cross bar 13 so that, even when the cross bar 24 touches the side 1311, the cross bar 24 can slide under the cross bar 13. Thus, the distance between the inner face of the lug 17 to the inner side 13a of the cross bar 13 may be approximately equal to and preferably no greater than the distance between the outer sides of the cross bar formed by arms 10, 11 and cross bar 14 of the bail 19. The width of the cross bar 14 preferably is greater than the width of the arms 20 and 21 forming a cross bar of the bail 19 and the spacing between the inner face of the lug 17 and the face of the lug 18 which faces the lug 17 preferably is greater than the width of the arms 20 and 21. Such a spacing of the faces of the lugs 17 and 18 preferably is provided so that the bail 19 may slide or be permitted a certain degree of movement away from and toward the cross bar 13 as the bail 19 is moved by the strap 34 toward the cross bar 13 so as to wedge the portion 35 of the strap 34 between the cross bar 24 of the bail 19 and the cross bar 13 of the member 10.

The side bars 22 and 23 of the bail 19 are provided with outwardly extending portions which engage with the upper surfaces of the side bars 11 and 12 so as to maintain the bail 19 in such a position that the portion 35 of the strap 34 is wedged between the cross bar 24 and the cross bar 13. Thus, as the portion 36 of the strap is pulled, the bail 19 is limited in its rotation by the upper surfaces of the side bars 11 and 12 and then moves toward the cross bar 13 so that the portion 35 is wedged between the cross bars 13 and 24 even though the direction in which the portion 36 is pulled is not parallel with the upper surfaces of the side bars 11 and 12.

The tubular portion 37 of the securing means 25 preferably has a bore which is greater than the width of the arms 20 and 21 so that when the fastening means 29 is pulled in one direction by a garment and the bail 19 is pulled in the opposite direction by the strap 34, the bail 19 may move within the tubular portion toward the cross bar 13. The tubular portion may be bent completely around the arms 20 and 21, the cross bar 14 and the end portion 42 of the fastening means 29 or it may be bent around the arms 20 and 21 and the cross bar 14 and only partly around the end portion 42, as is shown more clearly in Figs. 1 and 4. In this specification and appended claims, the word tubular is intended to include not only a completely closed cylindrical tube but also tubes of other cross sections and whether the tube is completely or is only partially closed as illustrated in the drawings.

When the bail 19 is in the position shown in solid lines in Figs. 1 and 4, the spacing between the cross bar 24 and the lower surface of at least a portion of cross bar 13 is less than the thickness of the strap 34. Thus, the lower face of the cross bar 13 may be raised above the upper surface of the side bars 11 and 12 which engage the bail 19 a distance no greater than the distance between the surface of the bail 19 which engages the upper surfaces of the side bars 11 and 12 and the upper surface of the cross bar 24 when the bail 19 is in a horizontal position, as seen in Figs. 1 and 4, plus a portion of the thickness of the strap 34, and preferably the distance between the lower face of the cross bar 13 and said upper surfaces of said side bars 11 and 12 is approxi mately equal to the thickness of the cross bar 24 assuming that substantially all parts of the bail 19 lie in a single plane, i. e., as shown in the drawings.

If the strap 34 is made of relatively thin, rubber latex, it usually is provided with beads at its edges, as shown at 39 and 40 in Fig. 5, so as to reduce the possibility of tearing the strap during use or adjustment. Referring to Figs. 4 and 5, it will be seen that both the beaded edges and the intermediate portion of the strap portion 35 bulge upwardly where the strap loops about the cross bar 24. We have found that this bulging portion of the strap 34 wears rapidly if it is permitted to contact garments which overlie the garter.

In accordance with our invention the cross bar 13 has at least a portion of its upper surface raised above the upper surface of the strap 34 at the portion thereof that is looped about the cross bar 24. Thus, if the strap 34 has beaded edges, the end portions of the cross bar 13 may be raised above the remainder of the cross bar, as indicated at 41 and 42 in Figs. 2, 4 and 5, so that the seems;

upper surfaces of the end portions are higher than the upper surfaces of the beaded ed es; With such a consanction anovertying arment is held awayf'from the surface of the looped portion of the strap 34. and the looped portion is thereby protected, If desired, the portion of the cross bar 13 overlying the portion of the strap intermediate the beaded edges may also have an upper surface which is higher than the upper surface of said intermediate portion ofthe strap 34.

In the preferred embodiment of our inventiont-he cross bar 13 has the portions 41 and 42 raised above theremainder of the cross bar 13 not only because such a construction permits the cross bar 13 to be of the same thickness throughout even though a strap with beaded edges is employed, but also because such a construction permits opening and closing of the bail 19 without compression of the beaded edges between the cross bar 24 and the cross bar 13. However, if desired, the upper surface of the cross bar 13 may be at the same level throughout its length.

It is desirable that the cross bar .13 be relatively thin and uniform in cross section throughout its length, and therefore, in order to raise at least a portion of the upper surface of the cross bar 13 which is intermediate the portions 41 and 42 above the upper surface of the portion of the strap 34 which is intermediate the beaded edges, the intermediate portion of the cross bar 13 may be tilted as indicated in Fig. 4, the cross bar 13 being higher at its inner side than at its outer side.

It is to be understood that the invention is not limited to buckles combined with means for attachment to hose, such as the button 31 and cooperating loop provided by the member 29 (Fig. 2). For example, the hose fastening means 29, 31 and 32 could be replaced by a simple loop for receiving a strap to be secured to the buckle, or in the alternative the hose fastening means could be omitted and a strap could be secured directly to the member (Fig. 2) by passing it through the opening 26.

Having thus described our invention with particularity, with reference to the preferred embodiment of the same, and having referred to certain modifications thereof, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art, after understanding our invention, that other changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit or scope of our invention, and it is intended in the appended claims to cover such changes and modifications as are within the scope of the invention.

What we claim is:

1. In an adjustable buckle adapted to engage a thin sheet-like rubber garter strap without releasing it when subjected to intermittent exertion and release of tension comprising a bail having a loop engaging bar adapted to engage a loop of said strap, said loop engaging bar being smoothly curved in cross section, a pivot portion and side members fixedly spacing apart said pivot portion and said loop engaging bar; and a body element pivotally associated with said bail, said body element having upper and lower parallel continuous cross bars fixedly spaced from each other by end members to define the long sides of an elongated, narrow, peripherally complete throat and having side portions extending to said throat, said side portions having upper faces positioned to engage the lower faces of the side members of the bail and spaced below the near side of the lower face of the upper cross bar by a distance approximately equal to the thickness of the loop engaging bar of the bail, the end members of the body element being outside and the inner side of the upper cross bar of the body element being within the arc of rotation of the outer side of the loop-engaging bar of the bail so that the loop-engaging bar of the bail is free to contact and spring past said inner side of the upper cross bar without contacting said end members when said bail is pressed against said body element. 7

2. In an adjustable buckle adapted to engage a thin sheet-like rubber garter strap without releasing it when tending to said throat, said upper cross bar having a lower surface that is concave with respect to the axis of rotation of said bail, said side portions having upper faces positioned to engage the lower faces of the side members of the bail and spaced below the near side of the lower face of the upper cross bar by a distance approximately equal to the thickness of the loop engaging bar of the bail, the end members of the body element being outside and the inner side of the upper cross bar of the body element being within the arc of rotation of the outer side of the loop-engaging bar of the bail so that the loop-engaging bar of the bail is free to contact and spring past said inner side of the upper cross bar without contacting said end members when said bail is pressed against said body element.

3. In an adjustable buckle adapted to engage a thin sheet-like rubber garter strap having thickened edges without releasing it when subjected to intermittent exertion and release of tension comprising a bail having a loop engaging portion adapted to engage a loop of said strap, said loop engaging portion being smoothly curved in cross section, a pivot portion and side members fixedly spacing apart said pivot portion and said loop engaging portion; and a body element pivotally associated with said bail, said body element having upper and lower parallel continuous cross bars fixedly spaced from each other by end members to define the long sides of an elongated, narrow, peripherally complete throat and having side portions extending to said throat, said upper cross bar having a lower surface whose ends are raised above the intermediate portion thereof, said side portions having upper faces positioned to engage the lower faces of the side members of the bail and spaced below the near side of the lower face of the upper cross bar by a distance approximately equal to the thickness of the loop engaging bar of the bail, said end members being positioned outside the path of rotation of the bail, said pivot portion of the bail being pivotally associated with said body element so that, when said bail is pressed against said body element, the loop engaging portion of the bail springs past the upper cross bar into said throat, with said side members of the bail engaging the side portions of the body element, and is held in strap clamping relation with said upper cross bar.

4. In an adjustable buckle adapted to engage a thin sheet-like rubber garter strap without releasing it when subjected to intermittent exertion and release of tension comprising a bail having a loop engaging portion adapted to engage a loop of said strap, said loop engaging portion being smoothly curved in cross section, a pivot portion and side members fixedly spacing apart said pivot portion and said loop engaging portion; and a body element pivotally associated with said bail, said body element having upper and lower parallel continuous cross bars fixedly spaced from each other to define the long sides of an elongated, narrow, peripherally complete throat and having side portions whose upper faces are positioned to engage the lower faces of the side elements of the bail and are spaced below the near side of the lower face of the upper cross bar by a distance approximately equal to the thickness of the loop engaging bar of the bail and above the upper face of the lower cross bar, said upper cross bar having a lower surface that is concave with respect to the axis of rotation of said bail and being positioned with the inner side thereof within the arc of rotation of the outer side of the loop-engaging bar of the bail, so that, when said bail is pressed against said body element, the loop engaging bar of the bail springs past the upper cross bar into said throat and is held in strap clamping relation between said upper and lower cross bars.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS -,Wright Sept. 1, 1896 Kerngood Apr. 7, 1903 Austin Mar. 14, 1922 Horobin Nov. 7, 1933 Reiter Apr. 16, 1935 Reiter Apr. 16, 1935 Hawie June 18, 1935 Broadwell July 2, 1935 FOREIGN PATENTS Great Britain Dec. 27, 1939 France Feb. 9, 1924 France Feb. 23, 1931 

